Share this article

Share

Despite selling its UK loyalty membership group for £4.5million earlier this year to further fund its US expansion, Premier now believes that it will take another year to gain full momentum.

Although it expects to reveal strong UK and European performance this year, Premier also warned that its £3million coffers may need a boost in the third quarter of its next financial year if US operations are to stay afloat.

Chief executive Dominic Tonner said it was 'disappointing' that Premier's US business is taking longer than expected to overcome weakness. Shares fell 49.7 per cent, or 42.5p, to 43p.

STOCK WATCH - HALOSOURCE

Shares in clean water firm Halosource looked healthy after it announced an agreement to launch a line of purifying water bottles in Asia.

The bottles will be made by Seven Step Ecotech, a division of Chinese plastics giant Hontay, and will use Halosource’s water disinfection technology.

The bottles will initially be sold in India and Indonesia before moving into China, South East Asia and the Middle East over coming years.

Shares in the company rose 19.1 per cent, or 0.3p, to 1.88p.

The story couldn't have been more different for Pets At Home, which hit its highest value since January after Berenberg gave it a 'buy' rating.

The company, which operates a vet business and sells pet products, scared investors this year by slashing prices (and profits) to stay competitive.

But Berenberg claims the growth in products being sold more than offsets this year's price reductions, with the business remaining on track to deliver results in line with market expectations.

The broker also thinks Pets At Home will be boosted by new innovations such as its flea medicine subscription service. Shares rose 6.6pc, or 12.9p, to 207.5p.

The FTSE 100 advanced 0.6 per cent, or 46.74 points, to 7310.64, lifted by a drop in the value of the pound after Theresa May's Brexit speech in which she suggested a two-year transition period for the divorce.

Shares in takeaway app Just Eat climbed following the news that rival Uber, which also offers a food delivery service, has lost its licence to operate in London due to a lack of corporate responsibility.

Although the ruling will only affect Uber's core ride-sharing business, leaving Ubereats unaffected, some traders assumed that Just Eat's market share would increase following the ban, and piled into the stock. Shares advanced 0.9 per cent, or 6p, to 690p.

Acacia Mining, which has been devastated this year by a ban on the export of gold concentrate in Tanzania, finally had some good news – it will circumvent the ban at its Buzwagi mine in the country by producing only gold bars until the end of its life in 2020.

Acacia said the mine will now be able to sell an additional 8,000-10,000 ounces per month for the remainder of 2017, and shares rose 1.7 per cent, or 3.1p, to 181.7p.

Security firms Indigovision and Westminster Group both tanked on the back of poor results.

Indigovision, which sells video security systems, fell 20.1 per cent, or 50p, to 199p, while Westminster, which provides security services for airports, ports and ferries, plunged 11.9 per cent, or 1.75p, to 13p after a £1.4million first-half loss.